Suntegrity Skincare Face Sunscreen and Primer Review

     I want to preface this review by saying that I am not the most tech savvy person and setting up my blog to look the way I want it to has been a challenge for me. I have been slowly making changes and yesterday I had trouble adding some social media buttons. So instead of getting frustrated about it, I left some of it as is and I am hoping someone can help me figure it out! I always try to find the humor in difficult situations, and this was no different. Long story, but the bottom line is that there's an extra social media button in a very strange place. I tried numerous times to remove it, but I was unsucessful. It reminded me of the "Where's Waldo" books. Anyone remember those? Like,  where's the social media button?! Get it? No? Okay, well maybe you could at least tell me how to get rid of it so it doesn't look so goofy? :-) Oh, and if you're on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, etc. please follow me?!  On to the review.....




Background

Suntegrity Skincare was developed by Tricia Trimble who lost her mom to melanoma. Tricia became a strong advocate for wearing sunscreen due to her mom's experience, but soon became aware of the toxic ingredients in most sunscreens and decided to develop her own non-toxic, mineral based line of suncare products.   They have products for both the face and body and also have supplements. Suntegrity Skincare is non-toxic, cruelty-free, vegan, paraben free, phthalates, propylene glycol, mineral oils, synthetic dyes, sulfates, paba, titanium dioxide, nano-particles, and chemical UV absorbers. It has an SPF of 30.  The company is also a signer of the Compact for Safe Cosmetics, by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. In addition, the Suntegrity Face Sunscreen and Primer is a 2013 Allure Magazine Best of Beauty Award winner.


The Product

The sunscreen comes in a 1.7oz. pump container for $45.  A little goes a VERY long way, I only needed about half a pump for my whole face. The first time I used way too much! It goes on almost completely clear, a TINY bit white at first but blends incredibly well. It goes on amazingly underneath my foundation. I have been looking for a sunscreen that could easily go under make up and not make it look gross. This product is it! It functions equally well as a primer as it does as a sunscreen which actually surprised me. It does not make my face feel oily nor does it emphasize my pores or redness on my face. It has become a holy grail product for me in a very short time. I will not be without it for the foreseeable future. If I HAD to pick something I dislike about it, it would be the packaging. I can't tell how much is in there, so I  won't be able to tell when I'm running low. 


Customer Service  I bought this through OpenSky , so I have no experience with this company. However, I can tell you that you can return products for any reason within 14 days of purchase if you purchase directly through Suntegrity Skincare. You can also purchase samples of some of the products if you don't want to commit to purchasing the full size.

You can find Suntegrity Skincare at www.suntegrityskincare.com

S.W. Basics of Brooklyn Review

Background

S.W. Basics was developed by nutritionist and personal trainer, Adina Grigore. She wanted to find skincare that would be suitable for her sensitive skin. Having been in the wellness industry since 2007, she knew she needed to adopt a minimalist approach using few natural and organic ingredients and leave out the many toxic ingredients that are in the majority of skincare products today. Each S.W. Basics product contains only 5 ingredients or less. They use ingredients that are natural, organic, fair trade, vegan (except for 1 lip balm) and cruelty free.

The Product

The S.W. Basics Best Sellers Mini Kit contains 4 1oz. glass containers of of some of their best selling products. They include, Cleanser, Toner, Makeup Remover and Cream. 

The cleanser is a thin, clear liquid that is meant to be wiped all over the face with a cotton ball or pad and rinsed off with water. It actually reminded me more of a toner in the way you apply it. I actually removed it from my face the same way, using a cotton pad soaked in water. I felt that this cleanser which contains organic rosewater, organic vegetable glycerine and tea tree oil was great for a light cleaning. It left my face feeling clean and fresh, but was not enough to remove a makeup. It has a light floral and tea tree oil scent.

The toner is excellent for my combination, acne-prone skin. It made my face feel less oily, yet did not strip my face of essential moisture. Although I really liked this product, I felt that I used it up very quickly and the 1oz. bottle was only enough to use it for a little over a week or so before I ran out. Otherwise, I was really impressed with it. It contains water, organic raw apple cider vinegar, witch hazel and essential oils of clary sage and sandalwood. It has a faint scent of apple cider vinegar and something pleasant that I can't quite place.

The cream is a somewhat thick moisturizer that can be used for the face and body. I that it worked great for me in the winter on my face and body and during the rest of the year on my body. A little goes a very long way and it melts right into the skin leaving it soft and silky. I also used it on my cuticles. I really thought it might break me out for some reason, but it did not. It contains fair trade shea butter, organic coconut oil,  organic olive oil. 

The makeup remover, is a thick, oil based product that easily takes off any makeup including waterproof mascara. A little goes a long way, but I found it spreads better when using my fingers instead of a cotton pad like I would typically use for removing my makeup. I have extremely sensitive eyes and many makeup removers sting my eyes. This did not sting my eyes and kept the eye area  lightly moisturized. 

This set retails for $45 for 4 1oz. glass bottles in a plastic pouch. I feel like this very expensive for travel sized products. However, considering the quality of the ingredients, I think they are worth the splurge. 

Customer Service

Customer service is awesome. Actually, go to their website and read their FAQ's page. What I got from it is that they want you to be happy with their products.....and they apparently have a comedian on staff! It's the funniest FAQ's page I've ever read! You'll see what I mean if you take a look! 

You can find S.W. Basics at 

http://www.swbasicsofbk.com

Acure Organics Chlorella & Edelweiss Stem Cell Eye Cream Review

Background

Acure Organics was founded by Kristy & Jon Guerra. They specialize in products that are paraben free, sulfate free, phthalate free, synthetic fragrance free, and cruelty free. Their products are made from fair trade ingredients that are natural and organic. Some are USDA certified organic, some are not.  Many of their products including this eye cream are also gluten free. They have a large range of products for the face and body. They have high quality ingredients in their products and they are extremely affordable in my opinion. 

The Product

Acure Organics Chlorella & Edelweiss Stem Cell Eye Cream is designed to moisturize the skin around the eye area as well as alleviate puffiness, fine lines and dark circles. I have been using it for over a month and I have found that this product helps in all those ways for me. I have suffered from dark circles for years as a result of allergies and lack of sleep and I found this eye cream to be really effective for dark circles, but as with most products, it takes time to see results. In addition, I saw a marked improvement in puffiness! I don't think I realized my eyes were so puffy until I started using this! It's major allergy season for me so I'm so glad I decided to try it in the spring! It's very moisturizing and I love putting it under my makeup because it soaks in fairly quickly and my makeup seems to go on smoother! The only major thing I found was that I did not see a huge improvement in fine lines. Maybe it's because I have only been using it for about a month. I may do an update on this either on the blog or on social media, so please stay tuned. I do feel that for the price, $18.99 for a whole 1 oz. tube, it works extremely well

Ingredients

I think the ingredients are great. However, some of the ingredients are USDA certified organic and some are not. I have to be honest with you here. I'm not totally familiar with all the rules and regulations regarding USDA certification, so there could be a good reason for this. I started a green beauty blog not only to educate and share what it have learned with others but also to learn from others. I will definitely look into this and share my findings with you all at some point. Please feel free to contact me if you want to share anything about this! One of the things I'm really enjoying about blogging is connecting with people who share the same passion for green beauty! 

Customer Service

I actually purchased this at my local Whole Foods. They have amazing customer service!  I looked on the Acure Organics website and they offer free shipping on all orders which I LOVE! They offer returns/exchanges within 7 days for unopened/unused products. 

Please check out Acure Organics at : 

www.acureorganics.com

You can find stores that carry Acure Organics on their website.